Method for producing cargo units and arrangement for same

ABSTRACT

Method and arrangement for loading cargo pieces or objects onto a pallet or the like, wherein the pieces or objects are nonsymmetrical or otherwise have an odd shape, for forming with said pallet a cargo unit having a predetermined shape. The invention is based on the idea to take advantage of gravity on loading the pallets and this is achieved by preparing a specific platform arrangement on a higher level than the pallet bottom level and placing the pallet inside a group of uprights secured to a based means and serving as retainers for a stack of goods placed on the pallet, and arranging adjacent the said higher level receiving means for loaded containers for the goods to be reloaded onto other pallets, upon filling the space above the pallet inside the uprights with goods, wrap a web of stretch film material around the pallet and the goods thereon outside the uprights and after wrapping such stretch film material around the goods stacked on the pallet, lift the pallet and stack of goods as one unit, leaving the uprights behind to slip by the sides of the stack and the inside of the wrapped film and subsequently transport the pallet and cargo unit for loading into the ship hold.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a method and arrangement for packing andproducing cargo or shipping units of a number of smaller units, e.g. andpreferably pieces of beef or other meat pieces.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Meat such as so called quarter beef, i.e. fourth parts of a beefcarcass, are today manually handled and carried from a land transporter,a truck or the like to shipping pallets where the beef pieces arestacked and subsequently wrapped or strapped.

The manual labor is extremely hard as each piece of meat weighs at least100 kgs and often up towards 130 kgs. The meat pieces are frozen andthey tend to get an exterior covering of ice or frost, which naturallymakes the handling more difficult. Even if three or four men carry eachpiece, they are not able to stack such heavy pieces very high on apallet, and the cargo thus placed on each pallet is normally rather loweven if supporting uprights or frame elements are placed around thepallet.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In sea transport it is an ambition to use the available hold space tothe fullest extent and not only to fill the deck areas completely butalso to fill the vertical space between the decks. On using manuallystacked pallets as described above, the full vertical space can beutilized only if there are arranged rack or shelf systems between thedecks so as to allow loading of two or more stacked meat pieces palletsthe one above the other on each floor. Such systems involve a lot ofextra work in installing and dismantling and hold up the loading andunloading as the rack sections adjacent the hatches normally have to beerected and dismantled respectively before the racks remote from thehatches can be loaded or unloaded.

One important object of this invention is to bring about a method and anarrangement permitting a practical utilization of the total availablehold space without the need of rack systems or the like.

Another important object is to bring about a handling equipmentminimizing the manual lifting and heaving and allowing stacking onpallets up to normal hold height thus enabling filling the hold tocapacity with one layer pallets on each deck.

Still another object is to bring about a new system for securing thestacked load on the pallets.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The basic idea behind the invention is to take advantage of gravity onloading the pallets/and this is achieved by preparing a specificplatform arrangement on a higher level than the pallet bottom level andplacing the pallet inside a group of uprights serving as retainers for astack of goods placed on the pallet, said uprights being secured to abase means, and arranging adjacent the said higher level receiving meansfor pre-loaded transport containers for the goods to be reloaded ontoother pallets preferably shipping pallets, upon filling the space abovethe said pallet inside the uprights with goods, wrap a web of stretchfilm material around the pallet and the goods thereon outside theuprights and after wrapping such stretch film material around the goodsstacked on the pallet, lift the pallet and stack of goods as one unit,leaving the uprights behind to slip by the sides of the stack and theinside of the wrapped film and subsequently transport the pallet andcargo unit for loading into a ship hold or the like.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A preferred embodiment of the arrangment and system for performing themethod according to the invention will be described below withreferences to the accompanying drawings, in which,

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an arrangement with thedifferent details localized for receiving pieces of cargo,

FIG. 2 is a schematic top view of the arrangement according to FIG. 1,with supporting doors added,

FIG. 3 is an end view or the arrangement according to FIGS. 1 and 2,

FIG. 4 is a top view of a slightly modified embodiment including rackmeans for carrying containers to be unloaded and a wrapping machine.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a special stacking frame for attachingto the shipping unit.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The pallet 1 to be used, is a so called shipping pallet having thedimensions of 1200×2100 millimeters and so arranged that it may beforklifted from all four sides.

The pallet shown is an all wood construction with lengthwise boardscarried by crosswise boards in turn resting on spacer blocks secured tobottom slats, the spaces between the blocks intended to receive forklift forks.

The arrangement as a whole is normally localized inside a building. Onthe floor stands a jig 2 including a number of uprights 3, the uprightsbeing arranged in pairs with a connecting web portion 4 at their lowerends. A plate 5 is secured to the downwardly facing side of the webportions and extends outside the jig like an apron for reasons givenbelow.

The pallet 1 is to be inserted between the uprights 3 resting on the webportions 4, with the crosswise boards and spacer blocks alingned withthe web portions 4.

A wheeled scaffolding construction designated 6 is placed alongside thejig 2 and said construction includes a central obliquely arranged slipplane 7 having a length roughly corresponding to the length of thepallet 1 inside the uprights 3. At each end of the slip plane 7 there isa working platform 8 for the workers handling the loading. Hinged on thescaffolding there are also two support doors 9, see FIGS. 2 and 3,swingable to a position indicated in FIG. 2, in which the doors coverthe open space above the pallet 1 and between the uprights 3 an eachdirection and serve as abutment surfaces on loading the pallet.

The arrangment according to FIGS. 1-3 is adapted to be served by a forklift device or the like hoisting device able to hoist a suitabletransport container with an openable side or end to the level of theupper end of the slip plane 7 to enable the workers to seize the piecesof meat and pull them onto the slip plane 7 and as the pieces slidedownwardly direct and swing same so they skid and fall onto the palletguided into the desired position. By adapting the vertical position ofthe transport container to the upper end of the slip plane so that theuppermost layer of pieces to be loaded is just above the said slip planeend, no lifting at all is necessary, only pulling out and guiding of thesaid pieces.

In the embodiment according to FIG. 4, a seat 10 for a transportcontainer is arranged at each side of the slip plane 7 and on each suchplatform a container may be placed for unloading. The platforms shownare rigidly connected with the platforms, but they may be constructed tomove as the contents therein diminish so the pieces to be seized alwaysare situated at approximately the same level as the slip plane upperend.

When the space on the pallet 1 and inside the uprights 3 and the doors9, is filled up to the desired level, normally above the cargo levelindicated by dash lines in FIG. 1, the scaffolding construction 6 withslip plane 7 and the platform is moved away from the jig so as to giveroom for a stretch film wrapping robot designated 11 in FIG. 4 andarranged to, in per se known way, wrap the cargo pieces accumulated onthe pallet 1 with pre stretched film. Starting from below the robot insuccession winds layer after layer around the pallet and the lowermostpieces and subsequently upwardly around the cargo and in doing so alsocovers the outsides of the uprights 3. When the wrapping is finished,the lead unit is ready for transport. By inserting the forks of a forklift truck or the like fork equipped device into either of the spaces ofthe pallet 1 and lifting the same, the pallet with its cargo will moveupwardly relatively to the jig 2 and its uprights 3, as the jig is helddown by the wheels of the fork truck resting on the apron plate 5. Theuprights slide out from between the stacked cargo pieces and theenclosing stretch film without hindrance as the lead unit is lifted.

As soon as the scaffolding construction 6 with the platforms is movedback in position and a cargo container is hoisted up at the rear end ofthe slip plane and a new pallet 1 is inserted inside the uprights 3, theloading of next pallet can start.

In another embodiment, not shown, the jig device may be movablerelatively to the scaffolding construction and be rotatable to permitstretch film wrapping by means of a stationary wrapping device.

Under certain circumstances it might be necessary and economical tostack also cargo units achieved by means of the method described aboveone upon the other. As the cargo units lack upper load carryingabutments it is necessary to complete the units with a load carrying anddistributing frame. An embodiment of such a frame is illustrated in FIG.5.

The loaded and wrapped cargo unit designated 12 including the loadcarrying pallet 1 is, according to FIG. 5, completed with a stackingpermitting frame. The frame includes six parts, two end parts 14 havingstabilizing braces 15 between vertical struts 16 and pairs of upper andlower supporting girders 17 interconnecting the end parts 14. Thegirders are connected to the end part struts by means of bolt and nutconnections 18 and the frame, which allows the use of forklifts, iseasily assembled and disassembled before and after use, respectively.

I claim:
 1. A method for loading a pallet with cargo including cargopieces each of which has an odd shape and forming cargo units to befitted in a predefined area, the method comprising the stepsof:providing jig means, for loading the pallet, the jig means having aplurality of uprights projecting upwardly; placing the pallet to beloaded on the jig means inside the uprights; providing a scaffoldingconstruction including an inclined slip plane board having a slopetowards a space above the pallet and inside the uprights, and at leastone worker's platform located adjacent to the slip plane board, a workeron the worker's platform seizing the cargo pieces while the cargo piecesslip along the inclined slip plane board and manually adjusting aposition and directions of movement of the cargo pieces to make thecargo pieces reach defined areas of a space above the pallet so as tofacilitate stacking further cargo pieces above already stacked ones;wrapping a stretch film material around the stacked cargo pieces outsideof the uprights; and lifting the pallet and the stacked cargo piecesthereon as a unit, leaving the uprights to slip by sides of the stackedcargo pieces and pallet as the stacked cargo pieces and pallet arelifted, and to slip inside of the stretch film material as the stretchfilm material is lifted with the unit.
 2. An apparatus for loading apallet with cargo pieces each of which has a non-symmetrical, irregularshape, comprising:a pallet; jig means having a plurality of uprightsprojecting upwardly for loading the pallet inside the uprights; ascaffolding construction disposed adjacent to the pallet inside the jigmeans, the scaffolding construction having an inclined slip plane with awidth adapted to a length of the pallet at least one platform locatedadjacent to the slip plane for supporting a worker adjacent to the slipplane to allow the worker to seize the cargo pieces while the cargopieces slip along the inclined slip plane and manually adjust a positionand directions of movement of the cargo pieces to make the cargo piecesreach defined areas of a space above the pallet, for stacking thereon,and a seat for carrying cargo pieces at a side of the inclined slipplane opposite to the pallet, the jig means and the scaffoldingconstruction being movable relatively to each other; and a wrappingrobot for wrapping a stretch film material around the stacked cargopieces outside of the uprights so as to form a cargo unit whereby thepallet is lifted with the stacked cargo pieces, leaving the uprights toslip by sides of the stacked cargo pieces and pallet as the stackedcargo pieces and pallet are lifted, and to slip inside of the stretchfilm material as the stretch film material is lifted with the unit.